NASHVILLE — Khalif Battle scored seven of his 24 points in overtime, and Arkansas defeated Vanderbilt 90-85 in the first round of the Southeastern Conference men's basketball tournament Wednesday night at Bridgestone Arena.
Arkansas (16-16), the No. 12 seed in the 14-team bracket, will play No. 5 seed South Carolina (26-5) in Thursday's second quarterfinal.
No. 8 seed Mississippi State (19-12) and No. 9 seed LSU (17-14) will meet at 1 p.m. Eastern in the opening quarterfinal, with the Arkansas-South Carolina matchup set to tip off 25 minutes after that one concludes.
Battle was 5-for-13 from the field with a 3-pointer, made 13 of his 14 free throws, grabbed six rebounds and handed out three assists. Tramon Mark scored all 18 of his points in the second half for Arkansas, while Makhi Mitchell came off the bench to score 18, adding seven rebounds, three assists and two blocks. Trevon Brazile finished with 13 points and 12 rebounds, and reserve Davonte Davis scored 12 before fouling out.
Ezra Manjon had 29 points, five rebounds and five assists to pace the 13th-seeded Commodores (9-23). Ven-Allen Lubin totaled 21 points, 10 rebounds and three steals, and Jaqualon Roberts scored 10 points.
Lubin had 11 points, Manjon scored 10 and Vanderbilt shot 50% from the floor and 3-point line on the way to a 41-27 advantage at halftime. Mitchell had eight points off the bench to lead Arkansas and Davis scored seven as the starters managed just 12 first-half points for the Razorbacks.
Mark heated up in the second half, and his four-point play gave the Razorbacks a 62-60 lead with 7:57 remaining.
Mitchell had a layup and Davis followed with two free throws to give them their first two-possession lead at 72-68 with 4:03 to go. Mitchell sank two foul shots to push the lead to 76-68 with two minutes remaining. Vanderbilt battled back and forced overtime tied at 78 on Manjon's jumper in the final second.
Lubin's dunk opened overtime and gave the Commodores their last lead. Battle made two free throws to tie it at 80. Brazile buried a 3-pointer with 2:54 to go, and the Razorbacks stayed in front from there.
It matched the largest comeback from a halftime deficit at the SEC men's basketball tourney since the event resumed in 1979. Alabama rallied from 14 down to beat Ole Miss in 2019.
AP photo by John Bazemore / Georgia forward Jalen DeLoach keeps the all in bounds as Missouri forward Aidan Shaw, right, looks on during an SEC tournament first-round game Wednesday night in Nashville.Georgia 64, Missouri 59
Blue Cain had 19 points, Justin Hill scored 17 off the bench, and 11th-seeded Georgia finished on a 12-0 run to beat No. 14 seed Missouri in the second game of the SEC tournament.
Cain was 6-of-12 from the field, including 5-of-9 from 3-point range, for the Bulldogs (17-15), who advanced to play sixth-seeded Florida (21-10) in Thursday's last quarterfinal. That game will follow the 7 p.m. matchup of No. 10 seed Ole Miss (20-11) and No. 7 seed Texas A&M (18-13).
Hill was also 6-of-12 from the field for Georgia, making a trio of 3-pointers, while Noah Thomasson and reserve RJ Melendez scored 10 apiece.
Sean East II grabbed a rebound and scored to give the Tigers (8-24) a 59-52 lead with 3:38 left to play. Hill hit a turnaround jumper, a 3-pointer and two free throws in the game-ending run for Georgia.
Nick Honor led Missouri with 14 points, while Tamar Bates and Noah Carter finished with 11 points and six rebounds apiece — Carter also with four assists — and Connor Vanover scored 10 points.
Bates' 3-pointer was all Missouri managed in the first eight minutes, falling behind 13-3. Bates had a three-point play to get the Tigers within six with 2:15 left. Melendez followed with a layup for Georgia, but Carter and Vanover had back-to-back baskets, and East had a three-point play in the final second as Missouri closed within 31-30 at halftime.
The Tigers, who trailed by as many as 12, used a 20-4 run spanning both halves to take a 43-35 lead with 14:14 remaining. Missouri stayed in front until Hill's 3-pointer with 1:43 remaining gave the Bulldogs a 60-59 lead.
East, who became the first Missouri player in 33 years to score at least 20 points in seven consecutive games entering the tournament, scored nine.
Missouri was the worst rebounding team during an 0-18 conference season, but the Tigers outrebounded Georgia 42-32.
These teams have faced off four times in the tournament, with each winning twice.